GlaxoSmithKline Plc has agreed in principle to settle its most significant disputes with the U.S. government over the way it marketed and developed its drugs, at a cost of $3 billion, which is covered by existing provisions. The settlement, over both civil and criminal claims, is expected to be finalised in 2012. It includes a Department of Justice investigation into the company's controversial diabetes drug Avandia, which has been linked to heart risks. Britain's biggest drugmaker already took massive charges last year related to liability claims from patients who had been taking Avandia.